Page 16 - CWW CHRISTMAS

December 10

A CHRISTMAS SURPRISE
Betty Willis

“…A Savior has been born…Christ Jesus the Lord.”
Luke 2:11, TLB

Now in our seventies, my husband and I have given away almost all our
Christmas decorations. Last year we decided to hang a wreath on the door, have Sunday
lunch for the kids early in December, and go on a cruise. After all, we’d done traditional
Christmas at our house for over fifty years.
The ship in Miami was festively decorated with Christmas trees, but it took me
several days to notice there were no nativity scenes. I’d taken for granted that the birth
of Jesus would always be the focus of Christmas, but I was in for a rude awakening. We
heard I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas, Jingle Bells, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,
and Here Comes Santa Claus, but not a single Christmas carol. I realized most of the
people on our ship were not Christians.
I looked for a Bible, having failed to put one in my suitcase. But there were none
in the nightstands or in the library. On Christmas Eve, I wrote out the Scriptures from
Luke 2 as best I could remember. My husband and I sat on our balcony, overlooking
God’s beautiful ocean, and sang O Little Town of Bethlehem and Silent Night with tears
in our eyes. On Christmas Day, we attended a Christian service that had been scheduled
at an odd time. Out of the three thousand on board, only a hundred came.
Coming from the Bible Belt of Texas, I was under the impression most people
believed in Jesus. That is not the case. This world has many religions, and Christians are
the minority.
I learned one thing. If you go on a Christmas cruise, take Jesus with you.